home.

We got home from a week and a half long vacation to Phoenix early Thursday morning after driving for 14 hours with our three boys.

It's good to be home.

We had a wonderful time visiting Mr. Gardner's mom and stepdad. We enjoyed spending time with our family, watching our boys play and cuddle with their grandparents. We did some serious shopping (I got to go to IKEA and Trader Joe's for the first time). We soaked up the beautiful sunshine and 80 degree days. Good thing, too...since it's been raining and in the 50's since we got back to Idaho.

I don't think there's anything like being gone from your home for a while to make you enjoy it more. Absence makes my heart grow fonder of my home. Even though it's messy and everything is only half unpacked, it's still home.

Jane Austen said it well: "There's nothing like staying (or, in our case, coming back) home for real comfort."

vacation.

A vacation is one-third pleasure, fondly remembered

&

two-thirds aggravation, entirely forgotten.

~Robert Brault

one.

April 28 was my baby's first birthday.

I made him cupcakes from Pioneer Woman's sheet cake recipe, with this frosting, and they were really yummy.

He was quite happy with his cupcake and candle...mostly the candle.

Then we blew it out...and I think we broke his little heart.

We encouraged him to try the cupcake, but he wasn't too sure...I think he was still upset about the candle.

Then he realized, "Hey, this is good!"

At which point he quickly devoured one...then two cupcakes!

Here he is declaring his passionate love for cupcakes with a little song...

Just kidding.

I used to think it was cliche to always be commenting on how fast children grow...until I had them. There's nothing like having babies to make you realize just how fast a year goes by. It's really obvious with little ones...a year brings amazing changes.

Mama loves you, Noah Bug.

what a woman wants.

You'll never guess what Mr. Gardner got me for Mother's Day.

I'll give you a hint...it's shiny and expensive, and I've wanted one for a very long time.

A diamond?

Not that expensive.

Give up?

Here it is.

Ohhhh so shiny...

What's that? It's not Mother's Day yet? Oh, right. I guess this would be a good time to explain how Mr. Gardner and I give gifts to one another.

When the day of gifting (i.e. Birthday, Christmas, Mother's/Father's day) is drawing near the gifter asks the giftee what they want. Frequently this occurs when the giftee is stopped dead in his or her tracks by an object they desire on a shopping outing. The item is then usually bought on the spot and all possible guesswork and returns are avoided. I know, I know, we are so romantic...

In this case, we were at Costco, and I, the giftee, was stopped by the display of beautiful Kitchenaid mixers (I always pause by them and touch the boxes and look at Mr. Gardner and wistfully say, "I should get one of these sometime" to which he agrees and then we continue on our way to buy our diapers and 4 gallons of milk). But on this day I was also stopped by the fact that our Costco coupon book had a coupon for $40 off a Kitchenaid mixer (this was up from $30 off at Christmas). Plus it came with 4 little prep bowls and a kitchen timer (which my husband and friends insist I need to stop burning things). Oh, and did I mention they also had a special mail-in offer for a FREE slicer/shredding attachment if said mixer was purchased before the end of May?

It was tempting, to say the least.

Now you must understand that I am notoriously cheap. It is hard for me to spend money, unless I am buying useless clearance items. I'm working on this. My husband helps me. He loves to spend money and he's good at it. He doesn't buy cheap crap just because it's cheap. When he buys things he buys them because he likes them and he buys high-quality.

That's how he got me : )

Anywhoooo....

This time, instead of walking away with me he said, "I think you should get it."

And so I did.

I vacillated on the color, I liked the silver, but also liked the classic white. Mr. Gardner helped with that as well. He said I could get anything I wanted as long as it was the silver one.

I love that man.

I couldn't help but think of the movie Father of the Bride when the bride almost calls off the wedding because her poor husband-to-be buys her a blender, not knowing that he has unwittingly condemned her to a life of repressive domesticity, and stripped her of all feminist dignity.

Not me, baby. Bring on the kitchen appliances!

sprung.

Spring is here...it appeared this week out of nowhere, just like these tulips in our yard.

I love how Spring does that...and how you can feel it before you can see it.

A few evenings ago, right after supper, we all spontaneously wandered outside and savored the warm weather...

My Spring baby loved digging his little toes in the grass.

As did I.

Eli went straight for the dirt.

And Mr. Gardner and Josiah climbed the tree so they could look down on the rest of us.

Eli eventually got bored with the dirt and took off down the sidewalk, so Mr. Gardner had to catch him...and provide me with this gem of a photo.

I love Spring.

I'm glad it's sprung.

good for you & tasty too.

I found this recipe for superpower breakfast cookies last fall, but have just recently started making them on a regular basis. They are quite nutritious and very filling and, best of all, they taste wonderful...the whole family loves them!

I pretty much follow the recipe exactly (I know, unusual for me) although I usually double it because they disappear so quickly...

Oh, and I do divide my batch into two bowls before adding the chocolate chips, and substitute dried cranberries in one for my boy who *gasp* doesn't like chocolate...I don't know what happened there...

the stairs.

Noah is now at the age when he must feel the undeniable need to navigate the stairs. Historically, the ascent is rarely ever the problem, it's coming DOWN that seems to give the little guys trouble. In a house with stairs, this is obviously a necessary skill, but the process always seems to foster some bumps, bruises and tumbles.

Mama isn't a fan.

Here is the way to come down the stairs, as demonstrated by Noah:

1. Realize that you have climbed the stairs.

2. Panic. Cry for your mama.

3. Realize that your mama is not going to help, and is, instead going to take pictures.

4. Try to go down head first, and realize this is scary.

5. Listen to mama's suggestion to go down backwards.

6. Give it a try.

7. Works well!

8. Forget what you just did and panic a little.

9. Put your leg back up on the stairs...what?

10. Give up and hang on for dear life.

11. Cry for your mama.

12. Mama to the rescue.

13. Thanks mama.
Awww...

Oh, well. There's always next time...

(Note the symmetric bruises on his forehead from the last stair-climbing attempt)